1. Field of the Invention
The present application relates to playground, amusement or exercise apparatus employing a seat pivotally suspended from a crossbeam by a flexible suspension strand such a chain generally referred to as a swing. More specifically, the invention relates to devices designed to prevent or discourage the throwing over the crossbeam of swing seats thereby causing the winding up of the chain on the crossbeam.
2. Description of Related Art
Swings designed for recreation and exercise are well known in the art. The vast majority of configurations employ suspension strands of chain, links or rope by which the seat is pivotally suspended from a crossbeam. The chain and rope swing configurations are inherently susceptible to vandals throwing the swing over the crossbeam and winding the strand about the crossbeam rendering the swing unusable.
The aforementioned problem is well known in the art and has been addressed by British Patent No. 2,053,702 which employs axially mounted horizontal buffer or braking rails removed from, but adjacent to the crossbeam in combination with rigid or semi-rigid elongated members which are connected to the crossbeam by pivot means. The preferred embodiment of this invention calls for the rigid member length to be 25% to 50% of the total swing suspension length to prevent throwover. This hybrid suspension configuration is much less flexible than the commonly used chain or rope swings and is more expensive to produce.